Fabric edger



2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

/f//ns MyW FABRIC EDGER L. D. LA VALLEY M kN April 14, 1964 Filed Jan. 3l, 1962 April 14, 1964 L. D. LA VALLEY 3,128,797

FABRIC EDGER Filed Jan. .'51, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent O Filed Jan. 31, 1962, Ser. No. 170,070 Claims. (Cl. 139-266) This invention relatesl to a loom, and more particularly to a fabric edger or thread parting mechanism for a loom.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide an electric fabric edger which has no wearing parts against. the loom temple, and wherein there are no blades to be sharpened or replaced, and wherein the electric fabric edger of the present invention is constructed so that there will be no shredding of threads vor pulling through dull blades, and wherein there will be no tearing of threads away from the selvage.

A further object of the present invention is to provide anelectric fabric edger of the type stated which utilizes a hot wire that is located ybehind a guide bar so that it will be protected from mechanical injury and from cooling from fanning action of the reed and lay beam, and

y,wherein there is provided a shoulder on the guide bar for preventing the selvage from coming in contact with the hot ,wire `and yet allowing trailing threads to slide over the shoulder and becut, the present invention also including a slot in the mounting plate which permits close adjustment to selvage without the necessity of moving the temple and marking cloth, the present invention also including hot wire mounting electrodes which can be bent so that the wire can be positioned to cut very ,short threads without `burning the selvage, and wherein the present invention is readily adaptable to old temples with a minimum amount of alterations, or else Y the present invention can be incorporated in temples especially designed or constructed for the present invention.

Still another object is to provide lsuch an electric fabric edger which is economical to manufacture and efhcient in operation and which is rugged in structure `and foolproof in use.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specification and claims, together with the accompanying drawings, wherein like parts are referred to and indicated by like reference characters and wherein:

FIGURE l is a front elevational view illustrating the electric fabric edger of the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2 2 of FIGURE l.

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3--3 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is avsectional view taken on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5 5 of FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view illustrating the mounting plate and associated parts.

FIGURE 7 is a view looking at the opposite side from that shown in FIGURE 6.

FIGURE 8 is a perspective View of the thermal element. FIGURE 9 is a view illustrating a modification. FIGURE l0 is a perspective view of a modied thermal element for use' with the assembly of FIGURE 9.

lFIGURE 11 is a vertical sectional view illustrating a further modification.

FIGURE 12 is a sectional view taken on the line 12- 12 of FIGURE 1l.

FIGURE 13 is a schematic View illustrating the wiring diagram for the present invention.

' Referring in detail to the drawings, and more particular to FIGURES 1 through 8 of the drawings, the numeral indicates a temple head assembly which is similar end portions 42 as well as an intermediate to that shown and described in prior Patent No. 2,928,- 431, dated March 15, 1960, and the temple head assembly lt) is carried at the forward or outer end portion of the usual slide member or'bar 12. The bar is encased or connected in the usual supporting springvstand 13 which is adapted to be connected in a conventional manner to a customary breast beam of a loom. i

As shown in the drawings the temple head assembly It) includes a conventional laterally extending offset lower base portion 14, and the numeral 15 indicates the pod element which is supported by the front end of the bar 12 and which may be integral therewith, and a temple top member or cap 16, and a flat sided top end block .1&7 are also provided. The top end block 17 is lixedly connected to the pod carrying base portion 14 by means of the usual top screw, and the top member or cap 16 is attached to the top end block 17 by means of suitable cap screws 19 which are arranged in threaded engagement with the block 17 and which pass through suitable elongated openings into an upstanding at vsided flange Ztl that is integral with the temple cap 16.

The numeral 21 indicates the usual roll pin, and the numeral 22 indicates temple rolls of a suitable construction and in FIGURE ly these members are shown yhaving a spiral grooved type of construction.

As shown in the drawings, the pod carrying base 14 of the temple head is provided with the usual depending heel 23 whereby the temple head assembly including its supporting slide member or bar 12 can bereciprocated relative tothe spring stand 13 for engagement by the loom lay which is indicated in broken lines by the numeral 24 in FIGURE 3, during forward movement of the lay as the filling is beat up into the fell of the cloth bythe loom reed 25, and this is also shown in broken linesin FIGURE 3, and this takes place during normal operation of the loom. l i

kAccording to the present invention there is provided a fabric edger which is indicated generally by the numeral 26, and as shown in FIGURE l for example, the fabric edger 26 consists of a mounting plate 27 which isprovided with a slot 28 whereby securing elements or screw members .29 can be extended through the slot 28 and into engagement with the top end block. The portions of the mounting plate on opposite sides of the slot 28 are indicated by the numerals 36 and 37. A

The mounting plate 27 includes a main body portion 30 which has a generally V-shaped notch 31 on a side edge thereof, for a purpose to be later described, and the mounting plate is provided with a raised oval surface F or portion 32' which is arranged adjacent to the notch 31.

The mounting plate 27 further includes an intermediate recessed portion 33 and there is also provided a horizontally disposed guide bar 34 which has an upwardly directed guard shoulder 35 thereon.

The numeral 44 indicates an insulator which has its lower portion arranged contiguous to the rear surface of the guide bar 34, and the numeral 45 indicates a substantially L-shaped bracket which is arranged adjacent the insulator 44, FIGURE 3. A thermal element guard post -l'is axed to the bar 34 in any suitable manner.

The numeral 38 indicates an electrical supply electrode which is suitably connected to the insulator 44, and the numeral 39 indicates an. electrical lead in wire which is electrically connected to the electrode 38. The numeral 4l) indicates a ground electrode'which is connected to the bracket 45, and a thermal element 41 shown in ,FIG- URE 8 is adapted to be connected between the electrodes 38 and 40, and the thermal element 41 includes coiled coiled portion 43.

In FIGURE l() there is illustrated a-modied thermal element which is indicated generally by the numeral 41',

and the thermal element 41 differs from the thermal element 41 in that the thermal element 41' has its end coiled portions 42 arranged in alignment with the longitudinal axis of the thermal element, whereas in FIG- URE 8 the coiled end portions 42 are arranged substantially at right angles with respect to the main longitudinal axis of the thermal element.

The numeral 48 indicates securing elements or screws electrical circuit for the thermal element 41 is adapted to include a rheostat 49 as Well as input lines or wires 50 and a transformer 51, and the numerals 52 and 53 indicate on and off switches.

The parts can be made of any suitable material and in different shapes or sizes.

As shown in FIGURE 1 the upper edge of the oval portion 32 in the lower left corner of the plate 27 is approximately even with the center of the notch 31. FIG- URE 4 shows the relative position of the thermal element 41, shoulder 35, and guard post 46.

In FIGURES 11 and 12 the guard post is a part of and a continuation of the shoulder, that is, it is horizontal for a slight distance and then bends upward vertically in the same relative position as in the other figures.

To many people in the textile industry, the suggestion that filling threads be cut with a hot wire immediately raises the question of fire hazard. A resistance wire hot enough to burn threads could also burn cloth, and the use of such terms might possibly create future sales resistance. In actual practice, a resistance wire does not burn threads, but it parts them so quickly that no burning can be detected. In the case of synthetic materials, the threads melt or fuse and thus part. In the weaving of cotton, considerable fluff and lint collects on the loom,

but a heated resistance wire is probably not nearly as t hazardous as the making and breaking of switch contacts or the heated surfaces of the fluorescent tubes overhead and in such applications, it is a matter of good housekeeping to keep the loom clean. Thus, the threads are herein stated as being severed not by a burning operation but are cut, parted, fused, disjoined, separated, or the like. The hot wire in the Patent No. 2,928,431 is replaced in the fabric edger of the present invention by an energized resistance unit or thermal element operating at relatively low heat, and it is not necessary to raise the temperature to a point where the resistance wire glows.

Thus, the thermal element and guard post of the present invention replace the previous so-called hot wire used in other types of electric thread cutters or parters. The drawings illustrate several different mountings of the fabric edger and in FIGURE 1 for example there is shown the location of the fabric edger relative to -the other parts of the loom.

The drawings show the fabric edger plate 27 mounted on the face of a loom temple. The plate is held in place on the face of the temple by two screws 29 tapped in the top end block 17. No grinding is done on the face of the end block. Some grinding is necessary in the cavity 55 and on the front of the pod element 15 and on the front 0f the top member or cap 16 to allow the guard post 46 and thermal element 41 which is the fabric edger, to move laterally to the right to approach the selvage of the cloth. This grinding does not affect any temple parts essential to the operation of the original mechanical blades, should it be desired to return temporarily to mechanical cutting.

These fixed blades are held in place by the slottered screw 56' which is visible through the plate slot 2S, FIGURE l, between the two mounting screws 29. The cavity 55 is not injured, and is used only to accommodate the fabric edger lead-in or electrical supply wire 39, FIGURE 3. The front part of the cavity 55, which originally held the movable blade of the mechanical cutter, is occupied by the insulator 44 and holder. The front temple roll 22 is in the position shown in FIGURE 1 relative to the guide bar 34. The cloth as indicated by the letter C in FIGURE 2, moves down under the roll between the roll and pod element 15. The spiral grooves in the temple rolls have a tendency to hold the cloth width, and one temple is located on the right side and one on the left side of the cloth. The movement of the cloth downward after passing over the lip of the pod element and guide bar makes an angle in the cloth and makes it difficult for the selvage to jump over the shoulder 35.

The temple is adapted to be ground to accommodate parts of the fabric edger and in actual practice, it is only necessary to grind the front lip of the cap 16 off to a point directly under the Vertical shoulder of the cap and this is in the vicinity of the extreme right portion of the guard post 46.

The lead-in wire 39 of the fabric edger is adapted to be held in place by a one-hole wire clamp mounted by a screw in the center of the bar 12. The plate and insulator holder or bracket 45 are adapted to be made of a suitable material such as brass.

The fabric edger of the present invention eliminates all moving parts entirely and in addition makes it possible to accomplish a close trim of the selvage.

The fabric edger of the present invention can be used on various types of looms such as automatic looms using magnetic switches and push button starts as well as on shuttleless looms, and the fabric edger can be used Wherever there is a need for cutting threads from the selvage at any point in the weaving process.

The electric fabric edger of the present invention is an improvement over previous electric thread cutters in that it can be adjusted to trim the threads close to the selvage of the cloth and leave no noticeable ends projecting from the edges of the cloth in the process of weaving.

This close trim is accomplished in a new and ingenius manner by having the thread parting or heating element located behind a guide bar such as the guide bar 34 which has a spur or shoulder 35 projecting upwardly slightly and sloping back towards the heating element so that the shoulder, while preventing the cloth edge from coming in contact with the heating element, allows the trailing threads after each filling transfer to be drawn over the sloping surface of the shoulder until they come in contact with the burning or fusing heating element and are neatly severed close to the selvage. The heating or thermal element of the fabric edger is of novel construction and with its adjacent guard post, has several advantages not found in the relatively straight electrical resistance or so-called hot wire used in other types of electric thread parters.

The electric fabric edger of the present invention is adapted to be mounted on the face of the loom temple head assembly and is held in place by two screws in the top end block 17, and these two screws fit in the slot 28 of the mounting plate 27 and serve the double purpose of not only securing the plate to the temple, but of allowing the plate to move laterally for a closer adjustment of the shoulder 35 to the cloth selvage without having to move the temple, an adjustment which leaves an imperfection in the cloth at that point. On the left side of the plate 27 is a notch 31 which is positioned to line the trailing threads with the top of the shoulder 35 to minimize the thread angle with the shoulder. The raised oval spot 32 guides the threads into the notch and prevents them from sagging.

There is provided at the bottom of the plate 27 the screws-48. A wire `40 of brass or other suitable material is soldered to the top of the insulator holder 45 and bent in such a manner that the bottom end of the wire or electrode 40 is even and parallel with the bottom of the `plate 27. Another wi-re 38 projects from the top of the insulator 44 and forms with the wire 40 the mounting for the heating element. The notch 56 in the top of the insulator 44 aifords room for the lead-in wire 39 which is locked `and soldered to the wire or electrode 38.l At 57 the bottom of the plate 27 is cut-away to allow ventilation for the lowerpart of the element 41 where it is soldered tothe ground electrode 40'. This ventilation is necessary due to the fact that lint-from threads passing over the shoulder drops down behind the guide bar and would pack around the terminal of the element if the tanning act-ion of the lay beam could not keep it clean by the rush of air at that point. The guide bar 34 is sloped up `to 4align with the temple pod elements 15. The shoulder 35 is in approximate alignment with the ends of the electrodes 38 and 40. lThe notch 31 is approximately level or slightly higher than the top of the shoulder 35, and the threads are adapted to center in .this notch 31.

The insulator yassembly lits intothe recessed face ofthe temple with only slight grinding. Two tapped holes are necessary in the top end block 17 of the temple for the mounting screws 29. While thepresent invention is presently illustrated for temples designed for mechanical cutter blades, itwill work equally as well on a temple del signed especially lfor an electric fabric edger of this type without the limitations imposed by a temple designed for y a different type of operation.

'Asrshown in FIGURE 13, -a rheostat or variable resis- Ytoris connected in series with the heating element 41 in the low voltage elec-tric circuit, with suicient capacity and proper resistance in ohms to afford a suicient range. of

heatfin the heating or thermal element to accomplish -the desired purpose. The lead-in wire 39 can be of any v approved` stranded wire of proper size. The thermal ele- -ment shown inthe drawings has been designedr to overcome the defects inherent in the short, straight lengths of electrical resistance wire used in previous electric thread f 4parters such as thatshown in prior Patent No. 2,928,431

Aor in .prior Patent No. 1,228,814.

. In considering the heating element of an electric thread partergnthere` are two important limiting factors. One isthe capacity of the'low Ivoltage transformer used on most looms, the other the cost ofthe power used to energize the heating element. An element designed to work -on'standard size loom transformers is at vpresent more practical Iand-advisable` than one that would requirean expensive change to a largerV transformer or a-separate l one. An element that would require a larger transformer would also consume more current, which multiplied by .thehundredsor thousands of looms in most mills, would l create` considerable sales resistance when the total current cost per year was estimated. The fabric edgerof the presentin-vention, designed withthe above factors in mind, draws approximately one and one-half amps. from a twelve4 volt twenty-five VA transformer, |and` since this transformer. .per-forms` only intermittent service at infrequent intervals and then only vfor aY second or tworat a v time infenergizingthe stop motion solenoid, it handles vthe .fabric edger load easily. For example, current cost per year at amill will only be a dollar or two per unit,

depending on Vlocal power rates.

f In order to-.bring a resistance wire to the proper temperature to part the threads and to keep the amperage vlimit down toone'and one-half, a very small resistance wire must .bevused A larger wire with less resistance f would not fumishsuicientheat at the same amperage.

#Tofbring this larger wire up to the proper temperature to v 'part the threads, a higher `amperage would be necessary,

-tion to the selvage of the cloth difficult.

contacts or improper adjustment, the resistance wire isv not energized and the trailing lilling threads pull Iagainst the cold wire and as they follow the moving cloth selvage back toward the cloth roll, -gain tension and eventually bend the 4resistance wire out of shape. A blown fuse, a broken wire, a loose connection, all common occurrences, causel the same damage. A heavier resistance wire would be less subject to injury, but has been temporarily ruled out. For the above reasonsthe concept of the relatively straight yheater or resistance wire has been abandoned and a new thermal element has been designed which not only makes it possible toruse Ia relatively heavy wire without increasing the current consumption, but also, by adding a guard post, prolongs the life of the element by protecting -it from mechanical injury land lduring power failures in the low voltage circuit.

In explanation, to obtain a proper cutting heat at one and one-half lamperes in a straight resistance wire, a short length of 30 gauge .0\l0. diameter resistance wire is used in series With the rheostat or variable resistor. At the same ampenage, a short length of 26 gauge .016 diameter wire will not reach aY temperature suilicient to sever the threads properly. However, if a series of coils is v wound in .the center part of the 26 gauge wire, the heat generated at the coils will be approximatelyl the same as the heat at the center of the 30 gauge straight wire. In

Vusing a coiled resistance wire or thermal element of this type, a heavier yand more rigid wire can be used with vno increaserin amperage and current consumption. A heavier Wire will last indeiinitely under loom vibration with coils to take up the shock, the normal life will naturally be longer, the original adjustment remains more or less constant because of the elimination of warping, and the formation of the element, .in connection ,with the guard 46, makes it impossible for the trailing threads to injure it when it is not energized during loom operation.

By referring to the drawings, it can be seen that the thermal element 41 ismounted on the electrodes 38 and 40 with thecoiled part of V.the thermal element located slightly behind and to the left ofthe rear projection of the shoulder 35 of the mounting plate 27. In loom operation, as the cloth moves Vback toward thecloth roll, lthe iillingthreads projecting from the selvage reach the front of the mounting plate 27` and slide over the `shoulder 35. The coils of the thermal element are sc positionedthat before the threads pass completely ,over the rear projection ofthe shoulder to drop downto the cloth levelagain,

they approach or contact the heated element 41 and are severed. l Should the element be cold, the threads,

. vbent `at a slight .angle between the surface of the coils and `the rear tipof the shoulder 35, drop down to the cloth level. At this. level, the llower partof the element has v left the coiled section. in a natural bend away from the shoulder, so that the threads hit the guard post instead of the element Wire and all strain is taken up by the guard post. This guardl postV is either soldered4 or attached in .someother vsuitable manner to the back of the guide bar f 34, with the free end perpendicular and roughly parallel to the thermal element. A suicientgap is left between v the guard post and the shoulder for the threads to drop -through whenrequired. In addition to vperforming a valuable function ,duringl low vol-tage powerv supply failv ures,- this guard post protectsthe element from selvage shift damagewhen a new warp is being pulled in over the pod element 15 with lthe temple top member or cap 16 removed. It also prevents the selvage from coming in contact with the heated element when an improperly set temple or slipping reed allows the cloth edge to crowd the shoulder to such an extent that it would have a tendency to work over the shoulder 35.

With further reference to the operation of the fabric edger of the present invention the following is submitted. When a new warp is installed, after sufficient cloth is woven to set the cloth line, the loom ihrer adjusts the temple properly and it is usually left in that position until the warp is run out. Since the cloth is held tightly between the pod element 15 and the temple rolls 22 mounted in the cap 16, moving the temple laterally makes an imperfection in the cloth where it is held between the pod element and the rolls. In some instances, due to varied tension on the cloth and other factors of adjustment, the cloth edge will shift slightly so that a minor adjustment of the shoulder 35 in relation to the selvage is desirable for close cutting of the threads. be accomplished quickly and without damage to the cloth by loosening the two mounting screws that hold the plate to the temple assembly, and shifting the slotted plate to the right or left to attain the desired result. The spacing of the element 41 or 41 in relation to the shoulder 35 and the post 46 can be regulated by bending either the electrode 33 or the electrode 40, or both. While the long life of resistance wire is well known, should the thermal element need replacing, a replacement plate assembly can be quickly installed on the loom temple and the element on the old plate can be removed and a new pre-coiled element attached easily and cheaply to be used for later replacements. There is no other wear on the unit.

Some of the advantages and important aspects or features of the electric fabric edger of the present invention over mechanical shear or scissor type thread parters are as follows. No intrincate casting is required to accommodate the fabric edger, no moving parts to cause wear in the loom temple, there are no springs or moving parts to be replaced, there are no blades or knives to sharpen or replace, also, there are no threads pulling through dull blades, leaving shreaded ends or pull marks in the fabric. There is no pulling of uncut thread ends away from their anchor causing jerk-in filling defects to occur. be noted that with regard to filling threads, most of the ller has a loose twist and frays or parts easily, making it necessary to have very sharp, close blades to make a positive cut. Some mills use filler running from 15 to 840 denier filler. The 15 denier is about three times larger than a spiders web, and the 840 is the size of the lead in a pencil. Cutting or parting by electric heat is far superior if properly applied as for example, as cornpared to mechanical shear or scissor type thread parters.

In addition, the electric fabric edger of the present invention possesses certain important advantages over previous electric thread parters insofar as simplicity of design and the minimum of small parts since this means low cost of manufacture of the fabric edger. Also, the present invention is readily adaptable to use with old temples with little alteration of the temples and it can be easily incorporated into a temple especially designed for the present invention, or any device located at the selvage of cloth or material adjacent to the point where discarded filling threads need severing during the process of weaving or fabrication.

Furthermore, there are no switch or moving parts to oil or replace and therefore no maintenance is required. The present invention utilizes low voltage circuit already installed on the loom for stop motion purposes, thus saving new power circuit expense. While the present device employs the loom stop motion switch and circuit for control of the current heating the thermal element, it is not dependent on that circuit, since it could work equally as well on a separate circuit controlled by a micro This can It is to 3 switch or other switching arrangement, or in the case of a loom equipped with a magnetic push button controlled switch or other type of power control, arrangements could easily be made to energize the fabric edger thermal unit from that control.

Also, the fabric edger assembly plate can be quickly replaced or exchanged by disconnecting the lead wire 39 from the supply wire and removing the two screws from the temple top end block 17.

The slot 28 in the mounting plate 27 aids in the cutting of short threads by making it possible to adjust the shoulder 35 close to the cloth selvage without changing the position of the temple which would make an imperfection in the fabric. The shoulder 35 on the guide bar 34 prevents the selvage from becoming damaged by coming in contact with heating element, yet allows the trailing filler threads to slide over the sloping shoulder where they are severed by the element.

The coiled thermal element makes it possible to use a heavier gauge resistance wire Without increasing the power consumption. The coils concentrate the heat at the point of contact. The protective guard post 46, in connection with the novel design of the thermal element, eliminates the possibility of injury to the element when it is not energized and heated due to failure of the low voltage supply. This post also guards the element from injury due to improper temple setting or loose reed installation.

The formation of the element mounting electrodes 38 and 40 allows them to be bent so that the element will be positioned most favorably in relation to the shoulder 35 to cut very short threads without contacting the selvage.

The thermal element 41 or 41 is located behind the guide bar where it is protected from mechanical injury. The looping ller threads during the process of weaving cannot come in contact with it and be prematurely severed, causing a loom stop-off. Sheltered behind the guide bar, the coils of the heating element are affected very little by the fanning action of the lay beam and reed as they move rapidly back and forth close to the temple head. The thermal element can be replaced inexpensively by slipping a new precoiled length on the mounting electrodes and soldering.

In the fabric edger, rheostat or variable resistor control of the current energizing the thermal element allows accurate and economical heat setting. Burning or fusing the threads, regardless of size, requires a relatively low heat, which prolongs the life of the element. The elimination of a switch cutting the current on and oi at each lling transfer and substituting steady, low heat from the resistor control during loom operation, assures longer element life, and an element lasts longer under low, steady heat than one subjected to frequent temperature changes. Proper heat in the thermal element makes a quick, positive cut and does not fray the severed ends, as a mechanical cutter often does. No pull on the threads to make a draw mark in the fabric is also an important feature of the invention.

Constant heat while the loom is running allows the element to sever whipping threads that often fail to anchor at the far end on filling transfer, thus preventing many jerk-in defects. Operating at low, controlled heat, the power consumption is small. Furthermore, a close trim of thread ends at the selvage of the fabric in many styles of cloth eliminates hand or machine processing to shear off the projecting ends in a separate process or operation, thereby saving considerable time and expense. The fabric edger is designed to meet the requirements of the National Electrical Code.

The point has been made previously that the present coiled thermal element makes it possible to use a heavier gauge resistance wire, in comparison with a straight wire, without increasing the power consumption. It can also be said that in an application where a small gauge wire arzene? lbility. Either or both could be mounted in a variety of ways.

In connection with looms which weave without a shuttle or bobbin, if there are threads to be trimmed from the selvage, an advantageous location could or may be found for the fabric edger on a shuttleless loom as well as in any other type of loom or fabrication equipment.

It is to be noted that all pull on the cloth is downward against the guide bar due to the position of the temple rolls and this makes it difficult for the selvage to jump the shoulder.

As the reed 2.5 moves back and forth beating the lling threads into the fell of the cloth, the shoulder 35 prevents the selvage of the cloth from coming in contact with the heating element 41 or 41. As the nished cloth moves toward the cloth roll, the two thread ends to be parted move over the sloping front and top surface of the shoulder and come in contact with the heated element, where they are parted from the cloth and drawin away into the waste receptacle.

The position of the guard post 46 in relation to the shoulder 35 and element are shown in the drawings. The threads cannot drop over the shoulder wtihout iirst contacting the element. If the element is hot they are severed. If the element is cold, they drop down between the thermal element and shoulder where the post 46 takes any strain ofr" the element. The center of the series of coils in the clement should be even with the apex of the shoulder.

In FIGURES 1l and 12, instead of being secured to the guide bar 34, the guard post 46 can be an extension of the shoulder 35 and be bent upward to be in the same position as the original post 46. If the element 41 was not energized, instead of dropping over the shoulder 35 to the cloth level, the thread would pull partially between the coils of the element 41 without bending or putting any strain on the element, and the post 46 would take the strain. The

element coils in this case would have to be spaced far enough apart to allow the thread to pull between them freely. If heated, these coils would still contact the thread enough to sever it.

Originally, the lip of the part 16 and the part 15 extends to the left far enough to partially conceal the temple roll 22, which is held in place by the pin 21 through the downward extension of the part 20. In accommodating the temple to the fabric edger, portions are ground away slightly including enough of the lip of 15 and 16 to allow the edger thermal element assembly room for lateral movement.

The cut-away part of the pod element 15 is adapted to end at a point so that the parts can be properly accommodated or received therein.

If the thermal element is cold and does not cut the thread, there is no strain on the element. The thermal element is pre-coiled as for example as shown in FIG- URES 8 and 10.

The present invention is primarily a simple metal guide of unusual configuration which permits the hot wire to be located close to the selvage of the cloth thus trimming the waste threads very short, but at the same time this guide or guard prevents the selvage or edge of the cloth from coming in contact with the hot wire and becoming damaged or injured. Short threads on a roll of cloth coming from a loom make it unnecessary to put the cloth through a hand or machine shearing operation. The present invention is of simple and rugged construction, and the present invention utilizes an electrical resistance or hot wire to cut, part, fuse or burn filler threads from cloth on a loom.

In FIGURE 13 the numeral 60 indicates a setofdrop wires so that when warp threads leave the beam, and then pass through a set of drop wires 60, the loommotion will be stopped if a broken warp thread allows one of the drop wires to fall and complete an electricr circuit. vThe threads then pass through the regulating harness and through the reed, which, moving back and forth on the lay beam, beats every thread into the clot as itis left there by each pass of the shuttle or bobbin. It will be noted that the point at which the filling thread ends leave the selvage, varies according to the weight or denier Of the warp yarn used. The fabric edger of the present invention is adapted to be adjusted for all widths of warp.

With further reference to FIGURE 13, the switch 53 is open when the loom is stopped, and when the loom starts, the switch 53 is closed. There is no circuit through the drop wires 66 unless a warp thread'brealts, allowing the drop wire to complete the circuit through the solenoid, which trips a member and stops the loom, opening -the switch so that no current can reach the solenoidv 61 or drop wires until the loom is started again. The member 49 is a rheostaat or variable resistor. The solenoid 61 stops the loom when broken warp threads are present so as to allow a drop wire to ground and complete the warp stop motion system circuit.

' With regard .to the method of controlling Vthe action of the loom electric stop motion switch, which energizes the thread cutting circuit while the loom is running and de-energizes it while the loom is stopped off, in this particular application, the loom shipper rod and warp stop motion switch are used to control the current energizing the fabric edger, but this can be accomplished in other ways, as for example, by means of a micro switch, a mercury switch, or an auxiliary relay. Running and stopping of the loom manually is controlled by the shipper rod and handle.

While it has been stressed that at present a certain amperage of current is preferable in the operation of the fabric edger, it is to be understood that this amperage is not an arbitrary gure, but might in the future be profitably raised or lowered to meet the requirements of a particular application by altering the size of the resistance wire and other electrical components. If increased durability of the thermal element is desired, the center heating coils, with the exception of the surface contacted by the trailing filling threads, may be embedded in a sheath of vitreous enamel or like insulating material.

Although the invention herein described is fully capable of achieving the objects and providing the advantages hereinbefore mentioned, it is to be understood that it is merely illustrative of the presently preferred embodiment of the invention and that the invention is not to be limited to the details of construction herein described other than as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. In a loom including a loom reed, a temple head assembly spaced from said reed, a temple roll supported on said assembly, and an electric thread parting device carried by said assembly, a guide bar disposed in the space between said reed and said roll and projecting from said assembly, and an upwardly directed shoulder disposed adjacent said thread parting device and carried by said guide bar, said guide bar being adapted to engage the selvage portion of a web being woven on said loom and to lift said portion to said shoulder, said shoulder being adapted to engage filling threads projecting from said selvage portion and to force said threads against said device for parting thereby.

2. In a loom including a loom reed, a temple head assembly spaced from said reed, a temple roll supported on said assembly, and an electric thread parting device carried by said assembly, a guide bar disposed in the space between said reed and said roll and projecting from said assembly, an upwardly directed shoulder disposed adjacent said thread parting device and carried by said guide bar, said guide bar being adapted to engage the selvage portion of a web being Woven on said loom and to lift said portion to said shoulder, said shoulder being adapted to engage lling threads projecting from said selvage portion and to force said threads against said device for parting thereby, and a post rising from said guide bar between said shoulder and said roll, said post being adapted to be engaged by a thread projecting from said selvage portion so as to prevent said thread from damaging said thread parting device when the latter is malfunctioning.

3. In an automatic loom having a temple thread cutting device positioned adjacent the selvage with electrical means for severing filling strands that project from the selvage during the Weaving process, the combination of a plate positioned adjacent and in front of the severing means and including a recessed portion, an upwardly directed shoulder extending from said plate into the recessed portion to prevent lateral movement of the selvage toward the severing means, said shoulder being sloped toward the severing means, said plate including a horizontal guide for lifting the selvage to the shoulder.

4. The combination of claim 3 including an upwardly thrust guard means behind the shoulder to prevent injury to the severing means should the severing means fail to function.

5. In a temple thread cutting device including an electric circuit with suitable supply means, an electric swtching means, an electric heat regulating means, and a coiled electric heating element, a guard means adjacent the heating element, said guard means so disposed that should the cutting element fail to heat due to a malfunction in the electric circuit, the uncut filling threads would move freely between the spaced coils of the coiled heating element and engage the guard means before the element was damaged, said guard means taking up all the strain from the tightly drawn threads.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,487,238 Hedler Mar. 18, 1924 1,615,188 Brannon Ian. 18, 1927 1,914,663 Douglas June 20, 1933 2,602,313 Reading July 8, 1952 2,746,275 Cobert May 22, 1956 2,868,235 Cederlund et al. Jan. 13, 1959 2,928,431 Poole et al. Mar. 15, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,054,626 France Oct. 7, 1953 1,218,502 France Dec. 2l, 1959 222,270 Germany May 20, 1910 481,584 Italy June 3, 1953 

1. IN A LOOM INCLUDING A LOOM REED, A TEMPLE HEAD ASSEMBLY SPACED FROM SAID REED, A TEMPLE ROLL SUPPORTED ON SAID ASSEMBLY, AND AN ELECTRIC THREAD PARTING DEVICE CARRIED BY SAID ASSEMBLY, A GUIDE BAR DISPOSED IN THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID REED AND SAID ROLL AND PROJECTING FROM SAID ASSEMBLY, AND AN UPWARDLY DIRECTED SHOULDER DISPOSED ADJACENT SAID THREAD PARTING DEVICE AND CARRIED BY SAID GUIDE BAR, SAID GUIDE BAR BEING ADAPTED TO ENGAGE THE 